What Mentoring Taught Me

When I started mentoring NIFT aspirants, I thought I was simply going to teach them what I had learnt.

Drawing. Perspective. Colour. Composition. Fashion illustration. Creativity.

But somewhere between correcting a sketch, explaining a perspective, and asking someone to try again, I realised that mentoring is much more than teaching a skill.

It is about understanding the person sitting on the other side.

Every student comes with a different way of thinking. Some are naturally confident. Some are technically good but constantly doubt themselves. Some have beautiful ideas but struggle to put them on paper. And some simply need someone to tell them, “Keep going. You are getting there.”

And honestly, that part has been as much of a learning experience for me as it has been for them.

Having studied at NIFT myself, I remember the pressure of entrance preparation. The obsession with getting things “right”. The fear that everyone else is better. The frustration when what you imagine in your head doesn't quite come out on paper.

Today, sitting on the other side of the table, I see those same emotions in my students.

And it has made me realise that creativity cannot be taught by simply giving instructions.

You can teach perspective.
You can teach proportions.
You can teach techniques.

But confidence takes time.

Curiosity has to be nurtured.

And the ability to look at an ordinary object and see a design possibility in it—that has to be developed.

What I enjoy most about mentoring is watching that little shift happen.

When a student who initially says, “I can't draw this,” eventually starts experimenting without being afraid of making a mistake.

That, for me, is progress.

Perhaps because I started my own entrepreneurial journey much later than the conventional timeline, I have become particularly sensitive to the idea that there is no one “right” age or way to begin something.

Sometimes we just need the right guidance, a little patience and someone who believes in our potential before we completely believe in it ourselves.

Mentoring has reminded me of that.

And maybe that is why I enjoy it so much.

Because while I am teaching them design, they are quietly reminding me why I fell in love with design in the first place.